MARKING THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ATOMIC BOMBINGS OF HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI (Scholarships available)

Join us for this national gathering marking the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and offer Campaign of Non-Violence promoters and others with significant opportunities to deepen the vision and practice of nonviolent change.

Social Action & Science

Being With DyingThis Professional Training Program for Clinicians in Compassionate Care of the Seriously Ill and Dying is fostering a revolution in care of the dying and seriously ill. Clinicians learn essential tools for taking care of dying people with skill and compassion.

ChaplaincyA visionary and comprehensive two-year program for a new kind of chaplaincy to serve individuals, communities, the environment, and the world.

ZAZENKAI: A Daylong Silent Meditation Retreat (11/9/13)

Instructors:
Sensei Shinzan Palma * Joshin Brian Byrnes, Vice Abbot

A daylong silent meditation retreat provides us with the experience of deep periods of uninterrupted meditation. We do sitting and walking meditation throughout the day, one hour of work practice, three informal meals and dharma talk by the teacher in the afternoon. Private Interview with the teacher will be available. Meditation instruction is available for those new to practice.

This daylong meditation retreat is an opportunity to become familiar with zen-meditation and zen-forms. It will give you also a taste of a sesshin (week-long intensive meditation).

You may also want to spend the weekend at Upaya for the fuller experience at a discounted price which includes lodging. Contact Registrar@upaya.org for more info.

If you are unsure of what to do while you are in the zendo, please watch and follow along. There also will be two residents by the front door who can help you to a seat. It may seem intimidating, but it is alright to make mistakes as you learn our form. The form of the zendo invites us into the practice of mindfulness which is essentially beyond "correct" and "incorrect". We invite you to relax, enjoy, and let the mind of "doing it right" drop away. We are happy to provide a chair if you think you would like one. Plesae let the registrar know at the time of your registration if you would like a chair. If you have further questions, or would like to join us for meditation instruction, please call the Upaya office at 505-986-8518, or email temple@upaya.org.

Sample Schedule

More about the instructors:

Sensei Shinzan was born in Veracruz, Mexico, He is a zen priest and Dharma Successor of Roshi Joan Halifax. He has been practicing Zen since 1996. In Mexico City, he met Korean Zen Teacher, Ven. Samu Sunim. Shinzan trained in the Buddhist Maitreya Seminar under Samu Sunim as he lived in the Toronto Zen Buddhist Temple for 4 years. He was ordained in 2004 as a Zen Buddhist Priest.

Shinzan arrived at Upaya Zen Center in 2006 and became a resident and student of Roshi Joan Halifax. He lived there and trained for over 8 years. He received the Dharma transmission on Jan 2015 from Roshi Joan Halifax.

He has taught Zazenkais and Sesshins at Upaya and co-teaches teen retreats in USA.

Shinzan left the residency of Upaya to return to Mexico and start a community spreading the Dharma in Mexico.His vision is to create a Zen Hispanic community in the USA and Mexico.

Brian Joshin Byrnes serves as Upaya's Vice Abbot and President. He came to Upaya in 2009 from the San Francisco Bay Area. He was ordained as a novice priest by Roshi Joan in 2012 and became a Dharma Holder in 2014. Before coming to Upaya, Joshin served as President and CEO of the Santa Fe Community Foundation, and worked for most of his career to now in the AIDS epidemic and leading a variety social change and community philanthropy organizations. Joshin's early spiritual formation was influenced by his time in the Dominican Order where he studied theology and was inspired by the work of many social justice advocates to seek a life of contemplative action in the world. While no longer a Catholic, he remains deeply committed to socially engaged Buddhism, especially issues around social change philanthropy, economic justice, gender equity, and child welfare. He is actively involved in the Zen Peacemaker Order with Roshi Joan and Bernie Glassman Roshi, and volunteers weekly at the local homeless shelter, in addition to his responsibilities at Upaya. Besides overseeing Upaya's administration and the resident and chaplaincy programs, Joshinteaches regularly at Upaya, leading practice periods, retreats, and sesshins, as well as regularly offering dharma talks, which can be heard here. You can reach Joshin at joshin@upaya.org.